The aftermath of Abel’s kidnapping has the Sons reeling - especially Jax, whose grief sends him into deeper turmoil over his future with the MC. Framed for murder, Gemma remains on the lam, and is hit with some unexpected news from her past.

Hal Boedeker

Heather Havrilesky

Creator Kurt Sutter, a longtime writer for "The Shield," has said that he wanted to create a West coast version of "The Sopranos," but the world he created sometimes feels like "The Sopranos" without any discernible moral compass.

Ray Richmond

Ellen Gray

It might all have been a bit lifeless, had not Sutter, a writer on "The Shield"--which has so far kept its own tragic hero from speaking in blank verse--not cast his wife, Katey Sagal, as Jax's mother, Gemma.

David Hinckley

Maureen Ryan

For all its ferocity, and despite some excellent supporting performances, there’s a curious hole at the center of Sons of Anarchy. The character we’re supposed to be most interested in is something of a blank slate.

Matt Roush

Brian Lowry

Working with directors Allen Coulter and Michael Dinner, Sutter does bring a visceral quality to the violence, while detailing the club's code and commitment to functioning as an extended family; there's just so little dimension to the characters early on that it's difficult to care.

Alan Sepinwall

Robert Lloyd

There are moments that require you not to think too hard, and some of the black humor doesn't overcome its fundamental nastiness. But on the whole, it's a superior package, intelligently constructed and handsomely executed.

Ginia Bellafante

Nancy DeWolf Smith

Set as far as possible from the canyons of New York, the series has a cool, original look--despite its C-movie moments when burly guys in black jackets zoom down the highway to the accompaniment of country metal rock.

Glenn Garvin

Rob Owen

Gritty and occasionally violent, Sons was created by Kurt Sutter, an executive producer on "The Shield." As "The Shield" prepares to bow out, Sons should capably fill the smart, testosterone-fueled void.

Verne Gay

Trade press has labeled this "'Easy Rider' Meets 'The Sopranos,'" which seems apt. Show comes from Kurt Sutter, longtime co-executive producer of "The Shield" (and married to Sagal) so that should give you a sense of tone and texture - violent, taut, well written.